Ski boots have evolved considerably from the leather boots that were used until less than ten years ago. Elastomeric polymers have by now virtually replaced leather. Modern ski boots are generally more rigid and higher to give improved performance for down-hill skiing. Several boot designs incorporate hinges between a foot-covering section and a separately formed section that can be tightened around the leg. These hinges allow the boot to be desirably rigid in the latteral direction but independently more flexible in the forward-backward direction. Some of these designs incorporate hardware to adjust the flexibility or stiffness. For example some of the U.S. Pat. Nos. concerned with this are: 3,619,914; 3,713,231; 3,747,335; 3,775,872; and 3,822,491. Other designs without hinges have also been concerned with adjustment in rigidity. U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,807,060 and 3,832,792 are examples.
However there still is no commercially successful and available boot that the skier can easily and quickly change from a very flexible boot that is preferred for walking and a stride type of skiing to some much more rigid boot that is preferred for down-hill skiing. Mechanical latches tend to be complex and/or expensive to accomodate the relatively large forces that they are subjected to during skiing.
The object of this invention is an improved type of ski boot that is relatively simple to mold and manufacture, wherein the boot has means to permit the skier to quickly and conveniently change its rigidity to suit his immediate needs.